01 October 2009

This continent that I love – the countries that I have visited and loved and still dream about are getting pummeled and beaten and battered in a rapid succession usually only seen in disaster movies. A catastrophic typhoon floods Philippines with a month's rain in one day, and then moves on to Vietnam and Cambodia to kill hundreds more – landslides now threaten entire cities. Sumatra is rocked by two massive earthquakes in as many days, leaving thousands buried in rubble in a country with scant resources to pull them out. Samoa and Tonga, tiny Polynesian nations also in the so-called "Ring of Fire" of seismic activity, have been ravaged by tsunamis, killing more than one hundred.

I am in Northern Luzon - you know, that top part of the Philippines that is smack dab in the projected eye of the new"super" typhoon scheduled to slam into land tomorrow. We are heading to a coastal beach resort in the North tomorrow, but neither of us are thrilled at the prospect of getting doused with the inevitable buckets of rain sure to come with the storm. The coast seems better than Manila, however – at least there won't be floods. A romantic beach end to our time together? Not exactly.

I can't help but wonder - what is next? After S heads to LA for work I am heading to Sydney next month – home of the recent red skies and dust storms. After that I head to Fiji – near the epicentre of the South Pacific quakes that caused the tsunamis. I'll end in LA and who knows what will happen to the Angelenos when Violet Dear gets nearby?

Maybe I have been reading too much Stephen King, watching too much Hitchcock – but I can't help but feel that I am cursing these places. In October I was in Bangkok during the coup, in November in Mumbai during the attacks, in Jakarta days after the Marriott bombings and in Yangon during Aung San Su Kyi's arrest. I was even in the Taipei airport the day that the deadly typhoon there started. What next? Is the world coming to an end?

It may come as a shock to you, but I was raised an atheist – with a few twinges of half-assed Christianity from my Grandma (She said a mean 'Grace') but that doesn't mean that I don't know my scripture. In fact, during my morbid semi-goth teenhood I read the bible cover to cover (I skipped the begats – doesn't everyone?) and I feel like I know the signs of the Rapture pretty well (yeah I do, Debbie Harry rapping and referencing Fab 5 Freddie....oh, not that Rapture? Not the Siouxsie Sioux album either? Sorry....)

Blood red skies at the bottom of the earth? Plagues and disasters? Massive earthquakes within hours of eachother? S made the comment that we are "riding the wave of disaster wherever we go." Good god, if I see any type of horsemen..... Usually I give the wackadoo street preachers downtown Vancouver a wide berth, but I think I may just stop and see what they have to say...or, er, yell. It doesn't hurt to be prepared. Especially when I seem to be cursing all of the places I visit.

All I know is that it really sucks that this seems to happen to Asia more often than anywhere else. These people have so little, so few possessions compared to what we have and it seems like a dick move on Nature's part to keep destroying their homes and killing their families. Maybe those street preachers and I do have something to talk about...

Click to donate to UNICEF Philippines, to Red Cross Indonesia (via the US) or Oxfam Samoa (via NZ.) Please help - a lot of folks could use a hand.

11 comments:

Anonymous
said...

well.. if we are getting closer to the end of the world... and the bible is right... and there IS a God... I think I'd get saved ... real fast... and in the end if you are wrong? well... I'd rather be wrong about my assumption that there was a God, and be no less worse in the end, than wrong about the assmption of NO God... and end up in a very bad place....

I enjoy reading your blogs, and I do not usually have time to post alot of comments, but I really felt to post to this one. By what you wrote in your post, I really feel like Jesus is tugging on your heart. It sounds like you know your Bible well... I once heard someone say that the Bible is love letters from God, and if we look at it like that... He definatly does love us enough to show us and prepare us for what is going to happen in this world and instruct us in what to do to be saved and ready for Jesus to come back. :-) I will be praying for you! God bless!

I applaud you on encouraging support for the region. You must feel a little like Forest Gump but without the cool ping pong paddle or Zelig without blending in part or even Christiane Amanpour sans the funky bangs. With the serindipidous opportunity your are experiencing, there is bound to be some ying with the yang. So like Garp's joy on finding the right house to purchase, maybe your next destination should be pre-disastered.

And on an upbeat note, i want wish you happy World Vegatarian Day.(ya for real)I'm thinking a good project for you to promote would be Day of International Pescetarianism, or DIP! for short. The movements moto could be things like 'DIP for fish', 'Get DIPPED' or 'Got Fish'. There could even be bumper stickers, wrist bands and little fish magnets for cars. Now that is a cause we can all get behind.

For me, it seems I leave destruction in my trail. I went to new Orleans, and one month later, they had Katrina. I went to France, a few weeks later they had the suburb revolts. I went o Australia, not even a month later they had massive forest fires. I wonder what will happen to Japan once I leave; I've been there for a looooong time...

Test your theory by coming to England, we're still talking about the 'big storm' of 1986 when about 5 trees were brought down!!

I think the last earthquake we had was over a year ago, and it roused almost a dozen people from their sleep.

We're all very worried about the news that the south of England is sinking by a few mm every year, if you come by and we end up the new age Atlantis whilst the Scots are clinging desperately to their highlands as the entire British Isles flips upright.....we'll know you need to be locked away.

Not to offend y'all, but the religious references were firmly tongue in cheek - I am an atheist through and through. I've read the bible, and parts of the koran and thoroughly studying Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism and Jainism to boot - I think everyone should! I also think that everyone should watch Bill Maher's "Religulous" just to see both sides. Cheers!

While I firmly believe this is not the place for a religious debate, because I like you very much and people get WAY too passionate about that topic, I must tell you... I was an atheist as well... "through and through"and then I met God... through the eyes of people I traveled with.. through the compassion of the stranger.. I met God, and man.. do I love Him. I will pray for you, but not in a ridiculous legalistic "I'll pray for you" way in which I really believe people are saying "oh you poor thing, i will pray for you and secretly judge you..." but i will pray for you in the way of... i really believe that you cannot avoid God in all your traveling and experience with the amazing soul that is Human which was fondly and lovingly formed... by an amazing Creator....

I'm not a Hindu or a Muslim, but I am in the hizzy. I'm just glad to know that the Earth is in working order...I'm mean, with out destruction how can there be life? Anywhoo, I enjoy your blog and the continual updates! It's a bummer that you're going to be in LA for a time, since I really enjoy the stories from other parts of the world. Maybe you can find a unique way to spice up your blog, to account for this American follower? Is that too selfish? Maybe so, but it's just a thought/request for you Dj Violet Dear...has a good ring to it. That was inspired by the word request, and yes I know, a very random thought, but that's me.

Who's That Girl?

I'm a writer, Masters student and neon sign historian who loves Herzog films, late night poutine and petting dogs. I currently reside in London, England where I am completing a postgrad in Heritage Studies. These are my ramblings about architecture, food, pop culture and Buddhism.